Thorns of Chaos
by Ryan the Game Master
Summary: Amends have been made and bridges have been repaired. Now Amy, Shadow, Sonic and the others will find themselves put to the test as they search for the remaining Chaos Emeralds...and Dr. Eggman. The follow up to Black Petals.
1. Armlocks and Tirades

**Greetings!**

**This is a follow-up to my previous Sonic story, "Black Petals", so you might want to read that one first, starting with the prologue.  
**

**If character development isn't your thing, don't read this.  
**

**All characters are owned by Service Games (SEGA).  
**

* * *

It was a bright, peaceful morning in the "New City" of Soleanna. People were going about their business and starting their own routines. It seemed as if life were continuing as per usual.

In the central hospital, a different type of routine was resuming…

"HA! Beat you again, Sonic!" exclaimed one Amy Rose triumphantly as she defeated her former crush in yet another arm wrestling match. "Aw, gimme a break, Amy," Sonic said with a bit of an attitude. "That arm's still healin'!" Amy just rolled her eyes and said, "Hey, you're the one who insisted you could beat me with it." Sonic just glared before smirking in good fun, which Amy returned.

Ever since the two hedgehogs had made amends weeks ago, Sonic and Amy had spent their days starting their friendship over pretty much from scratch. Since they were still healing from the brutal spat they had previously, there was little else to do, anyway.

During their recovery, Sonic filled Amy in on the adventures he experienced during their separation; the sights he saw, the thrills he found, etc. Amy shared her own experiences with Shadow's training. Sonic, for his part, was very impressed at how much she had grown, and made sure to tell her as much. Beyond that, the two became closer than they ever were previously.

Unfortunately, someone neglected to tell their next visitor this.

"AMY! MR. SONIC!"

The hedgehogs whipped their heads to the door in time to see a slightly older looking Cream the Rabbit burst through the door in furious tears.

"ThereyouareHowcouldyoudothis toyourselvesYou'resupposedtobe**friends**aren'tyouFriends**don't** 'resupposedtotreatgirlskindly andwithrespect**not** **now** **ASHAMED**OFYOURSELVES…"

Cream went on and on for a good ten minutes, yelling at Sonic and Amy without hardly taking a breath. Cheese, for its part, simply hovered in silence, glaring at them and nodding in agreement from time to time. She kept going and going, and just when she had finally inhaled to continue her uncharacteristic tirade anew…

"Cremia Louise Rabbit! That is enough!"

All four heads turned around. There was Vanilla, looking even more upset than her daughter, but for a different reason. "But, Mama," Cream began, but she was swiftly cut off. "But nothing, young lady! I know you're upset, and I fully understand why, but this is neither the time nor the place, especially in such a rude manner! I taught you better than that, did I not?"

Cream nodded shamefully.

"Then apologize to Sonic and Amy. Now."

The girl turned to the two and bowed low. "I'm very sorry." Cheese echoed her sentiments out of habit. Sonic shrugged uneasily while Amy replied, "It's ok, Cream. We kinda deserved that."

"Now, Cream," said Vanilla, "Wait for me in the hallway with Tails." Cream nodded and hurried out of the room. The moment she did, Vanilla said, "I apologize for my daughter's behavior. She should not have lectured you two like that." Sonic smiled and replied, "Eh, no biggie, ma'am. She was just-"

"However" Vanilla interrupted, her tone of voice turning icy, "In no way was she wrong about how disappointing the both of you have been acting." Both hedgehogs then flinched and scooted back in their beds when Vanilla shut the door, locked it and slowly turned around with a fierce glare. "**Now then, children...why don't you tell me exactly what the hell has been going on these past few years?**"

Both Amy and Sonic found themselves wishing Cream would resume her lecture.

* * *

_Getting lectured by a mother, even if she isn't yours, is never pleasant.  
_

_Thanks for reading and keep a lookout!  
_


	2. Intelligence: Pros and Cons

**LIFE. That is all.**

**Enjoy.**

**All characters within are owned by Service Games (SEGA).**

* * *

"…So, you enter the equation like so…" Tails demonstrated, entering a sequence on his custom-made Miles Electric device, "And there you have it!" At once, an 8-bit screensaver type of display was shown depicting a cute Chao Garden. Cream beamed at him with a warm and excited smile, cheering loud enough to fill the somewhat empty waiting room they sat in. "That's so cool! How did you get so smart, Tails?" The boy genius simply chucked and blushed. "Aw, it's no big deal." Cream shook her head. "No, no, it is. You always come up with the most amazing things! Plus, you can build and fix anything!" Her sweet tone turned a tad serious when she added, "Don't think I've forgotten how you were able to repair Gemerl." Tails smiled. That did mean a lot to her. "You really are cool, Tails."

The kit couldn't help but chuckle again. "Thanks, Cream. I guess I need to hear that from time to ti-" Before he could finish, Cream quickly pecked Tails right on his furry cheek. His blush spread furiously as he stammered, "W-Wh-What was that for, Cream, exactly?" The girl fluttered her eyelashes as she answered, "For just being you, of course," and then, she promptly kissed his other cheek. Tails tried to say something in response, but at this point, he was far too bashful and nervous to remain coherent. Cream noticed this, and chose to take the lead. "Tails, I wanted to ask you…do you know how to dance?"

He shook his head.

Cream took his hand and asked, "Do you…want to learn?"

* * *

"No. No…! No no NOOOOO!"

The sounds of yet another blueprint being ripped to shreds echoed throughout the empty, yet decently lit War Room of the Egg Bunker. Within, Dr. Robotnik racked his brilliant mind for a plan cunning enough to suit his evil purposes. But, thus far, he'd come up with-

"GARBAGE! Utter and complete garbage unworthy of my genius! I swear if it's not totally lame, it's been done to death! Honestly, what the hell is it going to take in order to get the rest of those accursed stones?!"

It was at that moment that Orbot chose to appear from his designated console. "Might I make a suggestion, Doctor?" Eggman whipped around and shot him a glare. "Absolutely not! I'll have none of your pretentious prattle, Orbot! If you piloted as well as you babbled, we would not have lost that latest Chaos Emerald to Tails, of all people! **TAILS!** Now I have to devise a whole new batch of plans to get the others and exact my revenge!" As if on cue, Cubot popped out of his own hole. "Is that gonna be before or after your revenge on Shadow, boss?" Eggman swiftly smacked him with a nearby wrench. "I thought I told you not to speak of that!"

Irritated, Eggman rose up from his chair and began to pace the room. "Blast it. It's bad enough that I had to deal with Sonic and Tails, but now my grandfather's creation is butting in, as well, along with that insistent nuisance, Amy Rose-!"

All too quickly, Eggman paused in his rant as if he'd remembered something. "Amy Rose…" He remained still, quickly going over various things in his head. In time, he began grinning deviously. "Orbot…" he called out with an eerie calm. If the robot had a spine, a chill would have crawled all over it. "…Y-Yes, boss?"

"Scan any recent information databanks for Miss Rose. I care not what you have to hack into or where. Just find her." Orbot nodded nervously and got to work. "As for you, Cubot…" The yellow robot, too dense to notice something amiss, saluted. "What can I do ya fer?" The doctor turned to him and ordered, "Contact Metal Sonic. Tell him that…Phase 2…is back on."

"Hehehehehehehe…..hahahahahahahahhah….GAHAHAHAHAHA HAHAHAHA!"

* * *

_Looks like the Eggman's got another master plan boiling.  
_

_Sad to say, but I have **no idea** when another chapter will be on the way, so please, be patient._


	3. Before the Storm

**...And, here we go! This chapter actually sat on the backburner for a while, but I came back to it and finished it today. Enjoy.**

**All characters within are owned by Service Games (SEGA).**

* * *

Shadow the Hedgehog impatiently waited for the elevator he was in to complete its ascent. Normally, he would have simply warped to the floor he wanted, but after he'd started getting complaints of patients suffering from (thankfully, nonlethal) heart attacks due to his sudden appearances, he'd been forced to take the elevators like everyone else. The very thought of it irritated him.

But, he decided to focus on the positive. Just the other day, he'd managed to make some progress in his training. Already he could tell that he was faster and a little more agile. With this, his skills would soon improve, and he would be an even more formidable force to be reckoned with. And, more importantly, he would be better prepared to protect those closest to him.

With that thought came Amy. Being separated from her for such a long period was refreshing, but somewhat lonely. Previously, he would have preferred the solitude and, of course, part of him still did. Now, however, not having the girl by his side seemed…unnatural. He knew this was due to how close they had become, but it still bothered him, since he wasn't used to such emotions.

The ding of the elevator brought Shadow out of his introspection. Grunting to himself, he decided to worry about it later. Right now, he had more immediate matters to attend to.

As he walked to Amy and Sonic's room, he soon heard soft music being played from the waiting room. He sped up a little to investigate and was surprised to see Tails and Cream slowly dancing, as if they were in a ballroom. Judging by the kit's nervous and apologetic expression, Tails was not used to dancing at all, so Shadow presumed that Cream was teaching him. Surprisingly, the girl's own expression was understanding and, as Shadow looked closer, hinted toward affection _far_ beyond her years.

Suddenly, he felt a tug at his arm, and, looking to his right, he saw Cheese pulling and pointing to his destination in a worried manner. Shadow knew that if Cheese was worried, something was happening. Taking one last amused look at Tails and Cream, he walked off; following Cheese to the room Amy and Sonic currently resided in. Before he could reach for the doorknob, the room opened, revealing Vanilla the Rabbit. The Mobian woman looked calm, but Shadow could tell she was rather perturbed.

"Oh, good afternoon, Shadow," she greeted cordially. While she was generally pleased to see him and trusted the hedgehog around her daughter, she wasn't terribly fond of his renegade nature and was more aware of the blood on his hands than anyone knew. "Likewise, madam," Shadow replied. "If you're here to see your fellow hedgehogs," Vanilla said, "They're right in there. They won't be any trouble." Glancing back sweetly, she asked, "**Will you, dears?**" Both Sonic and Amy flinched and shook their heads rapidly. "Good. Well, then, Cream and I will be on our way. Please excuse me." Shadow nodded and stepped aside to let her pass. As Vanilla walked by him, she leaned down to his left ear and whispered, in a low, venomous and deadly tone…

"My daughter was in tears because of this. If it happens again, I'm coming after _**you**_."

"Hmph. It won't, but you're always welcome to try."

"**I'll do more than try, boy. And don't think Rouge, Omega or the Commander will stop me.**" Punctuating that with a brief squeeze to his shoulder (which was far, FAR more painful than expected), Vanilla left. Shadow watched her go with a confused glare. Just who was that woman…?

"Waitin' for a bus, Shadow?" Sonic called out, snapping his attention back to the reason he came. He shook off his fear and walked into the room, making a beeline for Amy's bed, in spite of himself. "Hm. How are you feeling?" Amy smiled lovingly and answered, "Much better, sweetie. The doctor said we'll be ready to go in a few more days." Shadow gave a small smile and kisses her cheek. "Good to hear." Sonic let out a mock groan and quipped, "Get a room, you two. I just ate lunch." Shadow shot him his customary glare and was about to let out a prepared insult, but Amy just giggled. "You should see us after training. What a workout…" As Amy glanced at her boyfriend with a suggestive look on her face, Shadow quickly cleared his throat in order to change the subject, knowing full well what she was like when her imagination got going. "Anyway, I'm not just here to see you two. The Doctor is making his move."

That got everyone's attention. "Tch, I'll bet," Sonic replied, "He's probably still smarting from the beating I asked Tails to give him last week." When Shadow's ears perked up at that, Sonic elaborated, "Yep, if Tails can be trusted – which we know he can - our Chaos Emerald count, including yours, is now at six!" Sonic smirked proudly and Amy beamed. Shadow, though pleased, kept himself neutral. "That's all well and good, but this means he'll be getting desperate, and that is when he actually becomes a threat. We need to be on guard..."

Sonic and Amy nodded.

* * *

Just outside the hospital, a pair of cold, hateful eyes was watching the conversation from a far off rooftop. This person had a vendetta against the room's occupants, and while the desire to take them out was great, patience was needed. The time would come. Very, very, soon…

* * *

_And the plot thickens._

_You're probably wondering why I had act Vanilla in such a manner. Well, it's been a concept of mine (one of many) for Ms. Rabbit to have quite the dynamic past. Expect more from her in the distant future._

_You'll have to guess who was watching the room. I will say this: it's NOT who you're expecting._

_Also, I've been trying to come up with a proper logo for this story and Black Petals, but I'm having trouble. Would anyone be willing to help me out?_


End file.
